An old villager happily uses a telephone which has been reconnected by workers in Shaoyang County in central China's Hunan Province on Friday, February 1, 2008. [Photo: Xinhua]

Some lucky villagers in Shaoyang County in central China's Hunan Province are able to use their telephones again despite the snowy weather.

Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday that the rare severe winter weather has disrupted nearly 20,000 telephone lines in the county.

More than two hundred workers rushed to repair the connections day and night, and have already been able to restore some lines.

(CRI February 4, 2008)